James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Okay. Approximately €100 million is being spent on energy efficiency schemes by the SEAI. I would like to gain an understanding of the schemes the SEAI is providing for businesses that may wish to go carbon neutral, particularly in rural areas and towns where they may actually have the space behind or above premises for solar and small wind microgeneration.

This is an area in which we are not at the races at all in comparison to other countries in the vicinity of Ireland. The Danish, and some other Scandinavian countries, have excellent schemes in place and have very much encouraged people to undertake work in microgeneration. We have limited solar in this country, especially for the heating of water. When it comes to Ireland's venture into renewables, does the SEAI believe we could do more when it comes to microgeneration, perhaps by setting a target for each house and individual dwelling that has the capacity to generate its own electricity or be a net contributor to the grid?